Introduction:

As it grows in the fields, barley is a particularly handsome, stout grain.  In the pot, it provides a hearty chewiness to many a soup and grain salads.  Barley has historical roots in Mesopotamia, “the cradle of civilization”.

Culture:

All of our barley varieties are hull-less.  The significance of this is that in the threshing process the berries detach from the plant without a hull surrounding the individual berries.  This is always the case for wheat and rye berries, but not so for oats, barley, spelt, emmer and rice.  Most oats and barley varieties grown are varieties with hulls, which are then removed via a process which denatures the berry, rendering the seed without a germ and the berry un-whole, which is part of the goal anyway, since pearled barley is the desired end-product.  The benefit is a quicker cooking time.  The losses are nutrients.  Therefore, hull-less varieties are significant to us as believers in whole grains and nutrient-dense foods.  Some of our barley varieties are fall planted, while others are spring planted, depending on their winter sensitivities.  A mix of fall and spring planted grains are significant to us as growers for help in weed management.  Many of the varieties which we offer are the result of years of amplification: starting off with a handful of valuable seeds, we grew them out, saving all seed for replanting, and again and again, until finally the harvest is enough to share for consumption.

Availability:

The following varieties are available as whole berries or stone-milled flours:

• Dan
• Ethiopian
• Luther Burbank